For the last day of the Spiritus Free promotion, I thought I'd give my readers a glimpse at the faces behind the characters.  As I was writing, I had specific faces in mind for each of my characters and developed my own mental cast of characters.  How do they compare to what you had in mind?  I would love to know!

Becca:  I always pictured Becca to be a mix of beauty and frailty.  I wanted her wise beyond her years, but still youthful.  If ever a movie was made of Spiritus, I always pictured Hilly Hindi in the role of Becca.

Hilly Hindi's Biography (TheHillywoodShow.com)

The Hillywood show® is the brainchild of internet celebrities, comedy sister duo Hilly and Hannah Hindi. Each parody features satire sketches, character impersonations, song and dance parodies and spoofs of big box office films such as “TWILIGHT” and “THE DARK KNIGHT”. Every parody/sketch the Hindi sisters create include relative famous pop culture references aimed to the teen/young adult audience.

The look and style of The Hillywood Show® is constantly changing to keep up with the pop culture and newest franchise, but keeping the same mix of comedy, quirky performances, dead on impersonations, musical pastiche and movie spoofs.  Their incredible costumes & make-up would impress even the most seasoned “Saturday Night Live” cast member! With over 5,000,000 viewers The Hillywood Show® continues to grow!

Hilly  has been dancing for fifteen years.  She takes ballet, pointe, tap, jazz,  and hip-hop.  She has received honors for her dancing abilities from the Royal Academy of Dance and, also, the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing in London, England.   She has performed in numerous church functions, National competitions, conventions and concerts.

Since the age of five, her family noticed something different and unique in her acting.  She loved using her  personality in annual dance recitals, children’s pantomime shows and drama competitions, which earned Hilly her first blue ribbon at the age of six.

Hilly began imitating characters when she was thirteen.  Her first character impersonation was Pippin Took (Billy Boyd)  from “Lord of the Rings” trilogy.  Since then, Hilly’s impersonations have grown into a much broader range of approximately 20 characters. Hilly now plans to act in major motion pictures, television shows etc.  God willing, her endeavors will come to pass.

Alastor:  The part of the romantic ghostly lead had to be a man that was sexy, with amazing eyes, and able to draw you in.  When I first saw the Vampire Diaries from the Hillywood Show, I knew I had found my Alastor.

Nick Strong is a model that was selected to play the part of Damien.  I loved how he looked with Hilly Hindi.

Jonah:  I wanted to Jonah to be sexy, but lacking the dreamy quality of Alastor.  To me, Alex Pettyfer seemed perfect for the part!

From AlexPettyfer.com :
Alexander Richard "Alex" Pettyfer (born 10 April 1990) is an English actor and model.[1] He appeared in school plays and on television before being cast as Alex Rider, the main character in the 2006 film version of Stormbreaker; Pettyfer was nominated for a Young Artist Award and an Empire Award for his role.[2] He has been seen as a model in several advertising campaigns for Burberry.[3] His next two starring roles were in the 2011 films I Am Number Four, a science fiction action adventure, and Beastly, a modernised retelling of Beauty and the Beast. His latest film to date is Magic Mike, a 2012 comedy, in which he played a stripper named Adam.

I love bad boys!  Yep, give me a good villain any day.  As a writer, when things are going too perfect in a story, I can't wait to throw a villain in there just to mix things up!  I have a few favorite bad boys from over the years, some literary and others in film, but they are all deliciously evil!

Rumpelstiltskin
Mr. Gold/Rumple is my new favorite bad guy!  I love his demonic cackle and his complex storyline!  My hat goes off to the Once Upon A Time writers!

From The Once Upon A Time Wiki
Rumplestiltskin is a major character on Once Upon a Time. He débuts in the first episode of the first season. He is portrayed by starring cast member Robert Carlyle, and is the fairytale identity of Mr. Gold. Rumplestiltskin is one of the most feared beings in Fairytale Land and is notorious for his deals.

Rumplestiltskin is based on the titular character from the fairytale "Rumpelstiltskin", and takes the place of the Beast from the story, Beauty and the Beast.

Lestat de Lioncourt
I love Lestat in both book and film forms.  He's bold, arrogant, and so deserves the name "The Brat Prince"!

From Wikipedia
The townspeople of Lestat's village request his help with a pack of wolves that are terrorizing the town. He rides into the mountains and kills the entire pack of eight, losing his horse, dogs, and nearly his own life in the process. Although his bravery wins him the respect and admiration of the villagers, who present him with a lush red velvet cloak and boots made from the pelts of the wolves, he goes into a deep depression.

Prodded by Gabrielle, he eventually leaves Auvergne with friend and lover Nicolas and heads for Paris, intending to become an actor. During performances, he attracts the attention of an ancient vampire named Magnus, who later abducts him and transforms him into a vampire.

After turning Lestat, Magnus commits suicide, leaving Lestat to fend for himself without any kind of guidance. Lestat finds himself heir to a nearly inexhaustible wealth, and begins an adventure that leads him all around the world.

Dracula
Dracula is just the end all be all for villains.  In both the book and film versions, the story is haunting and actually makes you sympathize with him as he tries to reclaim his lost love.

From Wikipedia
In 1462, Vlad Dracula, a member of the Order of the Dragon, returns from a victory against the Turks to find his wife, Elisabeta, has committed suicide after receiving a false report of his death. Enraged that his wife is now damned for committing suicide, Dracula desecrates his chapel and renounces God, declaring that he will rise from the grave to avenge Elisabeta with all the powers of darkness. In a fit of rage, he stabs the cross with his sword and drinks the blood which is pouring out of the cross.

Freddy Krueger
Because I'm a child of the 80's, no list would be complete without the wise cracking Freddy.  While he doesn't have the good looks or charm of the other bad guys listed above, he is a true villain.  He has no redeeming qualities and other than a laugh now and then, he is pure horror movie fodder.  It was always fun to try and figure out just how he was going to kill each person.

From Wikipedia
Freddy Krueger is a fictional character and the primary antagonist of A Nightmare on Elm Street film series. He appears in Wes Craven's A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) as a disfigured serial killer who uses a glove armed with razors to kill his victims in their dreams, causing their deaths in the waking world as well. However, whenever he is put into the real world, he has normal human vulnerability. Krueger was created by Wes Craven, and had been consistently portrayed by Robert Englund since his first appearance. In the 2010 remake he was portrayed by Academy Award-nominee Jackie Earle Haley.

As a writer, I'm often asked how I come up with my ideas.  I think people picture writers sitting at desks with quill pens, a brandy, and comfy robes.  In reality, most of us are psychopaths arguing with that person that lives in our head. 

When I mention the word "muse", you might picture a beautiful woman in flowing robes that whispers into the ears of artists.  I wish my muse was like that!

My muse is a disagreeable creature that loves all things dark and depressing.  She can give me great ideas.....When she's not on a tangent about the stupidity of television commercials or how John Lennon could have saved the world.

I refer to her as "Stella" (odd that this is also the name I gave my daughter's imaginary evil twin).  Stella wanders from topic to topic, sometimes frightening me with her intensity, but she always has brilliant ideas.  The trick though, is to get her to talk to me.

Stella is like a juvenile delinquent. She sits in the room and refuses to say anything.  She might express her disapproval through a roll of her eyes or a snort type life, but she won't contribute anything.  When she does decide to actually share her ideas, it's usually at two in the morning when I'm trying to sleep.  It's normally around this time that I decide if she was a real person I'd kill her and not even bother to hide the body.

So, to answer the question of how I come up with my ideas.....I enter into a twisted partnership with my darker self.  I call her Stella, and we are always in the middle of a love/hate relationship.

So, Stella has been a busy girl this year.  First she came up with the idea of a ghostly romance.  Which is FREE this week on Amazon.

A love that refuses to die...

"As I watched him vanish into a soft mist that faded away, I knew that he was no ordinary spirit...I knew that he was a dangerous entity that could be in some corner of another realm planning his revenge, but I also knew that I was hopelessly in love with him."

When Becca moves into her ancestral home in Corydon, Indiana, her life takes a puzzling and thrilling turn when she meets the ghost haunting the halls. As the seductive spirit lures her closer and closer, she learns about her own past and starts to understand that some mistakes are meant to last.

Becca McAllister has always been different from other girls her age. Never part of the "in crowd", Becca never really fit in anywhere. When her mother dies and her father moves them to the small town of Corydon, Indiana, Becca didn't expect things to change.

But things do change when Becca accidentally makes contact with a one hundred and sixty year old ghost, Alastor Sinclair, that haunts the halls of her new home.

To Becca, Alastor is a seductive spirit that seems to see straight into her soul. To Alastor, Becca is what he has waited a century for--A second chance.

But the closer they get, the more Becca realizes that this isn't the first time she and Alastor have known each other. Worse still, is she the one responsible for his death so long ago? And if so, did he come back for love or revenge?

Then Stella decided it would be a good idea to explore the dark side of Becca and Alastor's relationship.

Alastor came at me then, forcing me back against the wall. He was so solid that I could feel his weight against me. I could feel his frozen breath on my face....He ran his hand up my arm, over my shoulder, and rested at the base of my throat. His blue eyes glittered dangerously.

Becca has accepted the horrors of her past life, and emerged with her ghostly love Alastor at her side.  But her happiness is short lived when she realizes that balancing her past and present won't be easy...

Becca has already decided that it's Alastor that she loves, but now, as their uncommon relationship limits Becca's future, Alastor must decide if he's willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for Becca's happiness....And will Becca's sanity survive?

And now Stella has decided that the story of Becca and Alastor should come to and end, so this week she made it possible for me to release the final book in the series.

I moved away from him, not wanting to be anywhere near him. I was hurt and angry. Ever since that first night in my room when he appeared to me, we had been moving toward this moment. Why couldn’t he see that?

To be in a love affair with a ghost is both a fantasy and a punishment for Becca. Always searching for balance between her deep love for Alastor and her desire for a normal life, a chaotic period of impulsiveness, death, and mourning have led her to the ultimate turning point. Can she and Alastor go against the laws of nature and cheat death to be together again? And at what price?

Well, it's over.  I said those words when I finished Incarnate back in July.  It was such a strange thing to say, but it was true.  It's over.

For the past year, I have lived the lives (and afterlives) of these characters.  In my mind, Becca and Alastor seem as real as any other person that I meet on the street.  Now our relationship is over.

It's odd how sad I feel about the end of this series.  It's like I'm letting go of my best friends!  So while the release of Incarnate has gone very well, it's bittersweet because I know that the amazing story of Becca and Alastor has come to an end.

I have this same reaction when I reach the end of a series as a reader too.  I hate to let go of characters that I love and often end up reading the same books again and again just to be with those characters again!

So, as a writer, do you mourn for your characters when a series ends?  As a reader, do you hate to reach the end of a series?

Now Available!

Incarnate (Spiritus Series Book #3)

I moved away from him, not wanting to be anywhere near him. I was hurt and angry. Ever since that first night in my room when he appeared to me, we had been moving toward this moment. Why couldn’t he see that?

To be in a love affair with a ghost is both a fantasy and a punishment for Becca. Always searching for balance between her deep love for Alastor and her desire for a normal life, a chaotic period of impulsiveness, death, and mourning have led her to the ultimate turning point. Can she and Alastor go against the laws of nature and cheat death to be together again? And at what price?

The amazing, much anticipated conclusion to the Spiritus Series, Incarnate highlights the magic, superstition, and tragedy of this hypnotic romantic epic that has entranced readers.

Enter to Win a FREE Incarnate E-Book!

FREE on Amazon This Week!

Spiritus (Spiritus Series Book #1)

So I must just LOVE making my life as difficult, hectic, and crazy as I can.  This week my daughter is on fall break from school, so I have a nine year old to entertain (thankfully she's a great kid) and what do I decide to do?  I decide it would be a great time to release Incarnate, the last book in my Spiritus series!  To make matters worse, I decide this would be the PERFECT time to also do a five day free promotion of Spiritus.  Oh, and why not throw in a Giveaway of Incarnate just to shake things up a little more.  What?  Do I get these ideas when I'm slap happy and no one bothers to tell me how crazy this is?

So, here we are, Happy Release Day to Me!  Incarnate is now available and I'm giving away 5 ebook copies!

I moved away from him, not wanting to be anywhere near him. I was hurt and angry. Ever since that first night in my room when he appeared to me, we had been moving toward this moment. Why couldn’t he see that?

To be in a love affair with a ghost is both a fantasy and a punishment for Becca. Always searching for balance between her deep love for Alastor and her desire for a normal life, a chaotic period of impulsiveness, death, and mourning have led her to the ultimate turning point. Can she and Alastor go against the laws of nature and cheat death to be together again? And at what price?

So to kick things off, I ask you:  Do you think Alastor should come back?

Let it begin!  The official release date for Incarnate is Monday, that gives me the next few days to vomit into the nearest trashcan and imagine every horrible review to come.  Oh the sickening excitement of a book release!

Is there a way I could make things worse for myself?  Sure!  Next week will also be my final free promotion for Spiritus with Kindle Select.  To coincide with the release of Incarnate, I came up with the bright idea of using up all five of my free days for Spiritus during release week.

So, here it is, the end of a series, the end of six months of Spiritus as Kindle exclusive, and the start of a writing project that for the first time in a year won't feature my beloved Alastor.

Yep!  I'm a nervous wreck and if I survive the upcoming week with my sanity in tact, it will be a miracle!

It's October, and in my house, that means only one thing:  The Halloween Costume.  To my daughter, it doesn't matter that I have a new book coming out next week or anything, it's all just about the costume.  She looks at Halloween the way most kids look at Christmas.

So, now we begin the drama of deciding what she will be.  To most nine year old girls, they want to be their favorite character from Monster High or maybe this will be their last chance to be a Disney Princess.  My daughter?  She always has to push the limits of good taste and Mommy's creativity!

Last year, she decided to be a pirate.  As you can tell from the picture above, it wasn't a "pirate wench" that she had in mind.  No, she wanted to be a full blown mini me version of Captain Jack Sparrow.  The Hair and make-up took two hours!  Not to mention a week of watching all of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies until she could copy his mannerisms perfectly.  Good grief kid!  Fixate much?

This year I was prepared for anything, but something should have told me I was in trouble when Alyssa kept watching The Hillywood Show's Gagaween video.  Sure enough, she comes running in and says that she wants to be "Yuyi".  So after a quick Google search, I discover that Yuyi is the name Lady Gaga gave her mermaid character.  All I could say was, "Seriously?"

It took her a while, but I finally convinced her that this would be a bad idea only because it would be impossible to move around.

Little did I know, things were only going to get worse.....She thought about Beetlejuice, then Edward Scissorhands, Deatheaters, and even Harry Potter, but so far the winner is......Skeleton Face (Zombie Girl) Lady Gaga.  Yep!  I get to learn how to do the full zombie make-up and tease her hair into some sort of cotton candy side pony tail. 

There's still a little bit of time before the big day, but I don't think things are going to get any easier. 

I've fallen in love with the work of a writer without reading a word yet.  Skimming through my massive TBR list on my Kindle, this author dominated my paranormal romance selections.  So, here's more about Felicity Heaton.

Taken from her Amazon Author Page:
I write passionate paranormal romance books as Felicity Heaton and F E Heaton. In my books I create detailed worlds, twisting plots, mind-blowing action, intense emotion and heart-stopping romances with leading men that vary from dark deadly vampires to sexy shape-shifters and wicked werewolves, to sinful angels and hot demons!

If you're a fan of paranormal romance authors Lara Adrian, J R Ward, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Gena Showalter and Christine Feehan then you will love my books too.

If you love your angels a little dark and wicked, my best selling Her Angel series is for you. If you like strong, powerful, and dark vampires then try my Vampires Realm series I write as F E Heaton or any of my stand alone vampire romance books I write as Felicity Heaton.

In 2011, four of my six paranormal romance books received Top Pick awards from Night Owl Reviews, Forbidden Blood was nominated as Best PNR Vampire Romance 2011 at The Romance Reviews, and many of my releases received five star reviews from numerous websites.

An angel trapped in Hell for centuries, Apollyon is tired of guarding the Devil. He longs to break free and feel the wind in his feathers, but he cannot leave the endless darkness without permission from above. When he senses someone calling him, he seizes his chance for freedom, but soon discovers the call came from a beautiful woman he has watched over from Hell, a woman who casts a spell on him and awakens the darkest desires of his heart.

Serenity is shocked when a wickedly sensual black-winged angel shows up in her city of Paris claiming that she called him when she was only casting a simple vengeance spell. He's no other than the angel of death! When the lethally handsome warrior offers to obey her and give her revenge, Serenity can't resist the temptation, but can she resist the forbidden hungers the dark angel stirs in her?

Intense and passionate, Her Dark Angel is a tale of desire and deepest forbidden love guaranteed to set your heart racing.

An angel accused of a crime he didn't commit, Lukas has been cast out of Heaven and sentenced to live in the mortal world. For three years, he's searched for a way to prove his innocence, and for three years, he's been falling for a beautiful mortal female. When Heaven strips him of his wings, Lukas seeks solace in alcohol, but finds it in Annelie's arms.

Annelie fell for Lukas the moment he walked into her bar. The tall, sensual blond sets her heart on fire with his otherworldly green eyes and wicked smile, but he's seriously out of her league. A single heated kiss unleashes Annelie's passion and she seizes her chance and Lukas with both hands, but in the light of day she discovers that he's not the man she thought he was--he's an angel.

Lukas will stop at nothing to prove both his innocence and his love for Annelie, but when he discovers who framed him and she ends up caught in the crossfire, will he be strong enough to protect the woman he loves and fly away with her into their forever after?

I am so excited!  I can finally announce that Incarnate will be available for Kindle, Nook, and other e-readers on October 8th!  To celebrate the release of the final book in the series, the first book, Spiritus, will be free for Kindle users October 8-12!

I moved away from him, not wanting to be anywhere near him. I was hurt and angry. Ever since that first night in my room when he appeared to me, we had been moving toward this moment. Why couldn’t he see that?

To be in a love affair with a ghost is both a fantasy and a punishment for Becca. Always searching for balance between her deep love for Alastor and her desire for a normal life, a chaotic period of impulsiveness, death, and mourning have led her to the ultimate turning point. Can she and Alastor go against the laws of nature and cheat death to be together again? And at what price?

The amazing, much anticipated conclusion to the Spiritus Series, Incarnate highlights the magic, superstition, and tragedy of this hypnotic romantic epic that has entranced readers.